Failure is not who you are, but a sign that the strategy used is flawed

Whenever we fail at a project, it is very easy to take it personally. We begin to feel bad about ourselves and can as a result develop low self-esteem. For example if your goal is to successfully run a shop however the rent is too difficult to manage, if you close it down, it is natural to feel like you failed.  If you feel like the reason that the shop failed was because you don’t have what it takes to run a business or that you attract “bad luck” – this will hurt the definition you have about yourself. Instead a better perspective to take is that the strategy you used was flawed. Perhaps your prices were too high or low, perhaps the location of the shop was not accessible to a lot of clients or maybe you did not have enough capital to promote or expand the business. In such cases the strategy is flawed, however it is not because there is something directly wrong with you.

Some students find that their marks define who they are and what their potential is. For example if they receive a poor mark for their chemistry test, they allow these test marks to define who they are as a student. Rather than seeing that it is probably their study habits, amount of practice and work habits – students may simply say that it’s simply their “fault” because they are not a good chemistry student. It would be more beneficial to reflect on your study habits – find out what you are doing differently than successful chemistry students and then adopt those features!

There is no such thing as failure – it’s only failure if you give up.

Although you may be disappointed about a result, it is not really failure unless you completely stop trying. Failure simply pushes you off course for a moment – however you have the power to redirect yourself back on road towards your goals. We will all encounter failure throughout our lives, this is natural. However people have very different ways of handling moments of failure for example, they might stop trying or lose sight of their goal. Remember that just because you “fail” it doesn’t mean that you need to stop trying – there is no point trying to be perfect in everything you do, rather it is better learning to keep sight of your goals, despite all odds. Remember ultimately you will be the one accepting or rejecting failure! If you have failed, don’t let it because the definition of who you are – instead decide why you failed and where the problem lies.

Failure helps you grow!

Many successful people in the past have failed in their lives more times than average people! Why do they succeed? Because each time they analyse their mistakes and learn lessons from their failures – and even though they may fail many times, they don’t take it personally. This attitude is what eventually reaps and attracts success towards them. Often we are programmed at a very young age to be perfect and that making mistakes is bad … however the truth is that it is only “bad” if nothing is done about it. If you continue to use the same strategy or the same mentality, failure is almost a guarantee. So allow failure to guide you, if you are taking the wrong strategy – failure will make this obvious.

Failure is subjective

Every person has their own definition of what success and failure means. Some students believe that success is obtaining a B+, other students see failure as achieving a B+. This shows that you make your own definitions about success and failure. In essence it is not really possible to “fail” – it is only possible to do so if you make rules about success and failure. Therefore it is important to closely analyse exactly what your definition of success and failure is – and whether you want to ease up on the rules you have set in order to feel more at peace with yourself.  Drop the need to be perfect – instead just do your best and as a result you will not feel so disappointed .

How to eliminate disappointment

• Realize that you and only you are in control with how you feel
• You can choose to energize positive or negative emotions
• Even if you feel disappointed, think what you can change to prevent feeling this way again
• Your goals are still possible – anything is possible to a willing heart
• Life isn’t about getting everything you want on a silver platter, there will be times when you have to stand up and try again after a fall.
• There is no such thing as failure until you give up
• Drop your need to be perfect – mistakes are part of improvement.

(1) Value your basic needs

If you don’t get enough basic needs such as sleep, proper diet, rest and exercise – it will be particularly difficult to remain in balance throughout the VCE. Balance is such an important factor during VCE – because without it you will find that you can burn out and lose motivation rapidly. Students that start their VCE year with too much intensity can lose energy for the rest of the year. It is best to simply value yourself and your right to basic needs. Don’t neglect sleep or substitute it with coffee – you will become tired and indifferent to your studies for long term if you do this!

(2) Learn relaxation and meditation techniques – and actually practice them!

Read about how to remain calm and centred. This state can be achieved even in the midst of chaos. Students often say “I don’t have enough time to meditate or just sit pointlessly” … what these students don’t realise is that meditation is not a waste of time! It is a method of improving the quality of your time. Meditation not only relaxes your body and reduces stress, but it also allows you to become centred and more focused. When we don’t meditate we become distracted by our thoughts and problems, our minds become scattered and we get carried away by petty and usually unimportant things. Individuals that meditate become more centred – they find inner stability and don’t get carried away by their thoughts and problems.

(3) Boost your confidence

Feeling anxious and scared throughout your VCE is often a sign of low confidence. Give your confidence a boost by changing yourself definitions. Challenge limiting beliefs and tags that you have accepted – for example if you believe that “I suck at Chemistry” ask yourself when you accepted this idea, why and what purpose it serves. Is it empowering? Or does it affect your marks in a negative way? Change these tags by replacing limiting beliefs with more positive ideas of who you are. It may take a while but it is possible to “re-define” who you are!

(4) Become effective with your time!

Your time is a gift – it is precious and limited. It doesn’t matter whether you will live to 35 or 85 or 100 either way every hour that goes by is an hour of your life that you will not be able to get back. Realize that your time is not infinite – every moment counts. So why waste this time on idle things? If you are studying maximize this time by paying full attention on studying. If you are going out, don’t carry VCE and problems in your head but simply enjoy your free time. Be sure to enjoy every moment you have and don’t simply throw away your time!

(5) Always do your best

If you really sincerely do your best, at the end of the year when your ATAR comes out – you will not feel guilty about the number. From the bottom of your heart you will know that you really gave it the best shot you had. So there will be no regrets! In fact it is great to integrate this into your own personal ethos. If you strive for perfection, you will find that there is a lot of resistance in your life. However if you strive for doing the absolute best that you can, you may achieve more than you believed possible.

(6) Stay organized

Write down important due dates and assessment details in your school diary. Keep your work in one folder or exercise book per subject. You will find that being organized saves a lot of time – because you don’t have to search for missing worksheets and important documents. Staying organized can help you become more efficient because you don’t have to waste time on pointless searching.

(7) Write a personal mission statement

Throughout the VCE, students get tired and some lose sight of their goals. This is perfectly normal – however it doesn’t improve your ATAR! It is better to keep your motivation levels more stable – this can be done by writing a personal mission statement at the commencement of the year. Make sure the VCE statement is realistic to achieve – but still high enough to work for the goal. For example don’t strive for 99.95 if you know that you have been an average student – because you may become discouraged and laugh at yourself in 6 months time. Rather perhaps aim for 85 or even 90, a score that could be achieved but requires discipline, focus and commitment. Give yourself good reasons for why you should achieve your goals. Make sure that they are convincing enough for when you are not motivated! So that you can get re-inspired about your goals again.

Have faith in yourself

Forget about other people believing in your potential! Although it is nice to feel accepted and supported it is fundamental that you believe in yourself first. Your parents, friends and teachers may believe in your capabilities and potential wholeheartedly but this is empty if you don’t believe in yourself!

This doesn’t mean that you have to become “cocky” and “full of yourself” – this is often a sign of low confidence where people need to paint a fake picture of who they are because they don’t like their real, authentic self. Know that you have the power and capability to change anything in your life – however you have to feel empowered to make a change. You must believe in your own self power and ability to make a difference in your life.

You don’t have to be perfect, you can just do your best

There is no need to achieve perfection. What happens when you want to write the most perfect English essay? You spend an incredibly long time writing the essay – because you need to come up with the most “perfect argument” etc. Often the perfection mindset blocks you from achieving a great mark because it blocks creativity due to micro-managing every small detail. Being perfect is not the goal, however doing your absolute best is important. By knowing you are working hard and really trying to do your best it takes away pressure. Now your priority isn’t becoming “flawless” it is doing the best with what you have. How can this increase confidence? By doing your best you don’t have to feel bad about your imperfections and weaknesses – ultimately you make the most with what you have!

Set yourself goals – and achieve them!

By setting yourself goals and accomplishing them – it can help your confidence levels. Why? Because when you set goals and achieve them, you begin to believe yourself more. How many times within your life have you said that you will do something only to find that you haven’t? For example you have decided to stick to a healthy eating plan only to find yourself eating a huge slab of chocolate cake 4 hours later? Most of deceive our own selves – we say one thing and then do the opposite. This causes confusion and mistrust in our own ability – we become powerless and sabotage our own potential. Rather, try to gain trust in yourself. Start of by setting small study goals – and achieve them. Slowly throughout time, your words will not be empty promises! If you say to yourself “I will get an A on my next Methods test” you will believe it! Because you have a great track record of sticking to your word – this will increase your confidence in your ability.

Change your posture and breathing!

Your posture can affect your physiology and therefore affect your mood! If you look at the body posture of depressed people, it is clear that they have similar characteristics. Their eyes are pointing downwards, they are hunched, breathing rate is slow and requires effort and they are frowning or have an upset expression. On the other hand happy people usually look forward, have a relaxed posture, deeper breathing and have a smile. Now you could argue that first a person gets depressed and then their posture changes – however the two are related. The state of your mentality affects your body and the body can affect mentality. One of the fastest ways to change how you feel is to change your body posture. Feeling tired? Sit up straighter and take deeper breaths. This is the quickest way to feel more energetic and cheaper than Red Bull! If you want higher confidence is what you want, find out what confident people do – for example how they walk, stand, sit and behave. Then mirror this physiology and watch your confidence grow!

Don’t give up!

You have unlimited potential – the only limitations that you have are the definitions that you made about yourself. You have decided who you are and defined what you can or cannot achieve. Perhaps family, teachers and friends contributed to defining who you are – but ultimately you accepted or rejected the definitions. Realise that these definitions can be changed – nothing is permanent! Who you think you are can be adjusted through correct awareness. So be sure to reflect on the definitions that you have accepted and change the ones that don’t help! If you think that “I am a weak maths student” ask yourself where this came from. Was it a low grade, insensitive comment or yourself being critical that caused such a definition? Does the definition help you achieve personal greatness? If not, why keep it? So re-evaluate your self-definitions and eliminate the ones that are not worthwhile.

It’s not a race!

Firstly there is nothing impressive about being the first one to finishing a test – ultimately your marks matter, not how quickly you have completed your work. There is no point rushing through a test or exam and find yourself with dozens of mistakes. Many students that rush through their work do not achieve high marks because quality also counts.

I’ve seen cases of where students have rushed through exams that they incorrectly read instructions, made mistakes in marking their multiple choice answer sheets, forgot to look at the back page of the exam … this is all a result of being careless.

Read the question carefully

Don’t just skim through the question, be sure to use your reading time appropriately. Make sure that you think about the question and be aware of any “tricks” the question could have. For example if there is a domain or important key work, take a mental note of it. Try to work through the question mentally as this helps you relax and remember key steps.

Be careful with questions you get “stuck” on!

In a VCE SAC or exam it is very important to be careful with timing. It is very tempting to spend a long time figuring out a question! In your own study time, it is beneficial to work on deciphering a question however in the exam there is little time for this. Be sure to leave the question and come back to it later. Sometimes when we stop forcing the situation, it is easier to come up with the strategy of completing the question.

Working too slowly? Time to practice the foundations!

If you find that it is taking you a long time to answer questions it is usually because (a) your foundations are weak (b) you haven’t practiced enough. When we learn something new, it often takes a long time to get used to it. The neuronal connections are not too developed yet and therefore it takes a longer time to process information. Therefore you usually work slower and have to think about each step carefully. However, eventually there is a moment where you begin to complete questions faster because of repeating the same steps.

Practice answering questions under exam conditions

Perfecting timing usually requires doing practice exams under exam conditions. Often students don’t sit down and time themselves when completing an exam. They focus on how to answer the question and miss the timing factor completely. It is vital that you practice at least 5 exams under exam conditions so that you can become more confident with timing. This way you will develop an understanding of the length of an exam – and it will also train you to stay alert and focused, especially for 3 hour exams!

If you have time, go through your exam again

Try to edit your work to improve the quality. So if you have some extra time – go through your exam or test and try to improve it. Elaborate on your responses and check for calculation or spelling mistakes. The presentation of your work will make it more “marking friendly” and teachers really appreciate this.

(1) Change your attitude

Firstly, it is almost impossible to succeed in an area of you have negative emotions or attitude towards it. If you find that you are beginning to disliking a subject don’t take it too personally.  There simply must be something you have not understood within the subject due to poor communication or listening. It is ok though – this can be fixed. Although it will take work to catch up, it is possible to improve.  An effective way to change your attitude is to ask yourself how you would feel if you were an excellent chemistry student. What kind of feelings would you have during chemistry? How would these feelings influence your attitude towards chemistry? Most students that “love” a subject are actually good at it. Most people begin to enjoy a project or subject once they feel capable in it.

(2) Understand the Law of Attraction

The law of attraction is a simple concept that links thoughts to results. It is basically a “law” that is developed on a very old concept – that your thoughts become your belief systems and eventually your results.  So watch what thoughts you energise about your ability in VCE Chemistry.

• Do you think that you are an inferior student and that you will never be as good as John Smith – because John Smith is a genius?
• Do you believe that you are not a good VCE Chemistry student because talented Chemistry students are born smart?
• Do you think your VCE chemistry teach is “out to get you”?
• Do you feel threatened by Chemistry homework because you have decided you don’t have the talent for chemistry?

How will these thoughts affect you belief systems? If you energise these thoughts over time, they will enter your subconscious mind. This is because the conscious mind can only focus on a limited amount of data at a time. The subconscious mind is a huge storage for thoughts and information.

What is important is to realise that your belief systems will define who you are as a person and student. Belief systems can limit your full potential or can set you free. You can change you belief system by changing your thoughts about what you can accomplish in VCE Chemistry.

(3) Be committed

To improve in VCE Chemistry you will have to work hard! Be prepared to study about 1 hour a day for VCE Chemistry – even if you don’t have homework. Set your own work! Take the intuitive to practice questions that are challenging. Taking correct action is very important for succeeding in any goal you set! You won’t get very far in life if you simply think positive but don’t do any action to achieve results!

(4) Find a capable VCE Chemistry tutor.

Yes, we are a tutoring company and obviously it is our business to provide tutoring – however we recommend tutoring even if you don’t select our tutors. Why? Because with the right VCE Chemistry tutor they will be able to provide great notes and questions that are different to your textbook. It is great to have a diverse range of questions to practice. This way your experience of VCE Chemistry is broader and you will become more confident with answering questions. A good VCE Chemistry tutor can also inspire and motivate you in the subject – you remain on track with your Chemistry. This can increase your confidence levels and improve your marks.

(5) Complete practice exams under exam conditions

To improve in Chemistry you need to practice your timing and accuracy in answering questions. A common problem during VCE Chemistry is that students do not have enough time to finish the exam – their exam time management is poor due to insufficient practice. It is a shame when students lose marks that they could get if they had more sufficient time.

It is very important to practice as many VCE Chemistry exams under exam conditions. This way you can work on your timing as well as your speed in answering chemistry questions.

(6) Learn to use your data book!

It is surprising how many students do not understand how to use the VCE Chemistry data book and waste time learning formulas that can be easily found within the data book. Be sure to use the data book throughout the year so that you have a good understanding of what information is contained within it.

(7) Make sure you express answers in the correct significant figures, scientific notation and the correct states.

Examiners will take off marks when they see that you are not writing your final answer in terms of significant figures. Also be sure to round off to the correct amount of significant figures only at the end of your answer. Throughout your calculations, you should be using the most accurate answer and carrying this throughout the question until you obtain an answer. If this answer is very small or large – you should also put it into scientific notation.

Also be sure to put the correct states into your balanced chemical reactions as this is also something that the VCE Chemistry assessors look at when correcting your work!

(8) Learn from your mistakes

If you have gotten a question wrong – be sure to learn from it! Circle the question for future reference (when you are revising). Find out exactly where you went wrong in the question and why your approach was incorrect. Make sure you know exactly what you did incorrectly so that it stays in your long term memory!

(i) Understand how concepts work
(ii) Memorise key definitions
(iii) Apply the knowledge appropriately in unknown situations.

In order to succeed in VCE Biology you will need to be disciplined in your studying – because there is so much to learn, it is best to study regularly to allow information enter your long term memory. It will also be essential to learn how to structure your responses to questions and your communication.  Finally it is important that you develop confidence in answering challenging application questions.

Your VCE biology SACs matter!

Although VCE biology SACs will be smaller in value compared to your exams, they are still very important. Overall you SACs will contribute to about 34% of your overall subject mark – so it is essential that you treat them seriously. Don’t listen to friends or students that claim “SACs don’t matter – it is only the exams that count” … SACs do matter, every single mark matters for the study score. Therefore aim to achieve your best during SACs. You can use them as a tool to improve your written communication skills and expression for your VCE exams.

Be sure to find out exactly what your teacher expects you to do for the SAC. Essentially your teacher will be deciding your SAC mark, so it is important that you follow their standards. If you teacher likes to see large scaled diagrams – include one! If your teacher wants you to talk about limitations of your experiment – make sure you focus on this section! Get to know your VCE Biology teacher – make sure you know what they expect from your SACs and ask them for tips.

Understand before memorizing

Most of VCE Biology is made up of concepts and definitions, however be sure to understand what you are studying rather than memorizing. Memorizing is empty without a deep understanding of concepts. During my Biomedical degree, I found that student that simply remembered terms often failed! Why? Because they did not understand the dynamics of the concept – and this is incredibly important. On the other hand I focused on understanding how all the concepts link up and interrelate – and although I remembered only 70% of what some students remembered, I always managed to pass with solid grades.

Understanding is what you want to achieve in VCE Biology – make sure you broaden your perspective by looking through other resources to develop a better understanding of the subject. Look for university Biology textbooks because although they are more complicated sometimes they have excellent pictures and descriptions. Check out some biology animations online or on YouTube. These are often great to reinforce how a concept or mechanism works.

Make sure you answer the question!

Some students are experts are rephrasing the question and speaking about a non-related subject. Often this will earn zero marks in an exam because the question is not answered. So always make sure that you read your response and ask yourself, “Does this response answer the question directly?”

Try to expand on your answers

If there are 5 lines available – try to fill them up with extra information. Elaborate on your answer! Show your VCE examiner what you know. After all you will probably be tested on a fraction of what you have learned within the semester or year. The exam is your opportunity and golden moment to show the examiner how well you have understood VCE biology.

You almost need to use the 1.5 hours (or soon 3 hours) to “sell” your ability – show the examiner that you care about the subject and they will be more likely to reward you.

Know how to spell VCE biology terms!

You need to know how to appropriately spell key terms in VCE Biology. Instead of just using DNA in your exam – sometimes you may need to write “Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid”. So learn the spelling of important key words, so that you can maximise your marks!

Never leave questions unanswered

This is of course unless you run out of time … However if you simply don’t know how to answer a question always try your best. Be sure to have a go, because sometimes upon writing a question the answer might click into place because you are challenging your mind to come up with something. So make sure that you always challenge yourself – even if you may be unsure about how you answer a question. Never mind if you still get it wrong – if you leave it you are bound to get no marks.

Draw mind maps

These can help you form links between concepts. It can promote you to understand the bigger picture. You will hopefully be able to understand how organelles work together or how photosynthesis and cellular respiration are related. By drawing mind maps you are using creative energy to express your ideas – this can often make learning more fun and enjoyable. It definitely breaks you out of a routine study pattern which can be often boring and ineffective.

Therefore don’t be scared to use creativity for learning! It can promote a better recollection of the important biology topics and help you understand the bigger picture.

Why is it important to remain positive during VCE?

Your thoughts are seeds that will reap action

Our thoughts are not simply insignificant events that happen in our mind. Just because you can’t see them, it doesn’t mean that they are not powerful. Quite often we believe that thoughts are simply beyond our control, that thoughts simply happen and that they cannot be selected. It is almost as if we are victims of thoughts – and that whether they are positive or negative there will be no difference in our lives. Right? Wrong! In reality the following is true:

(a) we can control and choose our thoughts

(b) our thoughts will become action and results.

Thoughts can often be seen as small seeds that can reap results. Choose to plant low quality seeds, and the results will be obvious. Choose excellent quality seeds – and you will have a lovely garden. Let’s consider a person that has decided that they are a “poor English student” – from an early age their teacher may have not believed in their ability or perhaps the student decided that they are worse than everybody else due low self-esteem. Whatever the case, the student decided to energise thoughts that tagged themselves as inferior to others in English. This is the seed they planted into their minds.

After that thought is planted, it is difficult to change it because the roots grow deeper. The thought becomes more automatic and stronger in intensity. Eventually the thought becomes a habit, and eventually converts into action and results. If a student continuously thinks that they are in adequate in English, every task they take up will be a struggle in this subject. This is because there will be continuous voice in their head saying “ I am not able to do this” or “I am not a good English student” or “I cannot do this task because I am a poor English student”.  Guess what, thoughts become reality – and the student will simply dig a deeper hole of self-doubt, low self-esteem and low confidence. Also their English marks will not improve with this mindset!

Luckily however, thoughts can be chosen! Ultimately we are the only ones that can control what we think about or what we accept to energise. Our life doesn’t simply happen to us, we have free will to choose our thoughts – and this is the most powerful free will of all because it guarantees a direct result in our life. So remember the following rule, not only for VCE, but also for life:

Thoughts   =   Results

If your thoughts are negative, this is not kept a secret! Just because it happens in your in head, it doesn’t mean that it won’t come out into the open. Since these thoughts become results, eventually by the results you have will be seen in the results you have. If your marks are poor – this is a result caused by a thought about yourself that turned into a belief and finally actions that converted into poor marks.

So be sure to monitor your thoughts – especially the ones that you energise most, as in long term these will become your own personal definition of who you are and what you can achieve. This is not only relevant for VCE but your entire life! If you think that you are a weak person with low immunity – you will become sick just to match this belief. If you think you deserve to be poor and broke – you will miss great opportunities to make money and invest in opportunities to cause you to remain broke so that you remain true to your own belief systems!

If your thoughts are positive and constructive, you will generate better results. If you know that you are capable of excelling in your studies and that you are able to handle challenging situations – your core belief will be that “I am a capable student”.  This is a positive belief system and will allow you to excel in your studies because you will match your belief system.

Positive thinking reduces stress and clears the mind

Positive thinking brings stress to a normal and healthy range. It allows people to remain optimistic about the future and their goals. It is important to have hope for the future as this will keep you motivated.

Negative thinking promotes negative emotions and slows people down. It clatters the mind, keeping this individual trapped with fear and self-doubt. Such states do not in any way promote success. It also increases stress experienced and often causes learning to be a difficult process and full of resistance. Everybody goes through periods of negative thinking – this is natural for humans, however it is important to recognise when your thinking is negative and consciously transform it back to a positive framework.

Positive thinking promotes a better memory

Positivity has been linking to a better memory capacity. Individuals that are positive have better brain activity which promotes a better working memory! Once again it is clear that thinking positive is not just about the results you will get in the future , it also improves the way that your mind works!

Positive thinking makes you happy!

Why not indulge in thinking that makes you happy over long term? The more positive your thinking is – it will strengthen your own happiness. We often believe that happiness is only possible when our life it “turning out”, but this is false. Happiness is really a state of mind – and it is a choice. There are plenty of rich people out there that are unhappy, whereas many people that have very little and are full of joy and happiness. What is the difference? Is it their external environment? Not really! It comes down to their thinking – they realize that their thinking can give them more happiness then the external situation!

Exercises in books do not prepare you for the exam

Exercising textbooks often simply teach you the very basic foundations of skills that you need to know for your test or exam. These are often simply robotic exercises that do not necessarily require any critical thinking. Usually the exercise is explained with many examples – and the student understands what formula or concept they are developing in the exercise. All the questions are sorted and grouped together so that students automatically use one formula or concept to answer questions.

Why is this not effective? Because students may not understand exactly how this is relevant to the bigger picture. They don’t know when to use the formula, or exactly what purpose it serves. They simply understand how to substitute numbers in, or what concepts the question focuses on.

This is why students often become surprised when they don’t achieve good marks in tests and SACs -they claim that they have understood all the exercises, however got confused when applying the knowledge.

Developing knowledge is like painting – you need many layers of it until it becomes good quality

If you have ever painted a house or your room, usually we don’t just paint the room or house once but many times. Firstly you will need an undercoat, then you need to first layer and finally your second layer.

Be sure to make your learning in layers as well.

Foundations
Firstly you need the foundations. The foundations are found within exercises of your textbook. These are simply very basic questions that you need at a minimum level. You cannot rely on foundations alone to accomplish a good mark – passing is possible, however focusing only on foundations will definitely not allow you to achieve a 50 study score.

Make sure that these foundations are very strong, because they will build the framework of how well you understand the topic. Remember that the stronger the foundations of the house, the stronger the house is – but it is flawed to think that you can live comfortably in a house that only has strong foundations. Obviously you need a roof, walls and some structure for your house!

Understanding the bigger picture of the foundations
Secondly you need to understand the bigger picture of the foundations. For example if you simply look at a piece of wood in the framework of your house, this piece of wood may not make much sense. However when you step back and look at the total framework – a piece of wood is not an individual part of the framework, it has a very important part of maintaining the entire framework of the house.

Likewise with your foundations, realise that each of the exercises you are doing in your textbook will link up in some kind of way to the overall framework of knowledge. On its own in, when you zoom into exercises they may not seem like they have any relevance – however if you take a step back realise how important this exercise is to the bigger picture of the subject.

In this case you need to learn how every exercise you are doing links up to the topic you are studying. It is recommended to draw mind maps of how each exercise relates to the bigger picture of the subject. This way you will understand more about how everything you are learning is relevant.

Using the foundations for more challenging questions

In building a house this would mean putting in bricks, roof, walls and turning a house from its foundations into an actual enclosed space.

Remember the foundations are not the only thing that you have to strive for, these foundations need to be used for more apply purposes. Likewise in your studies you will need to focus on more challenging questions in order to use the foundation skills.

By challenging questions we are referring to ones that require you to apply knowledge – for example in maths long worded, problem-solving questions. O

Obtain different resources

As was mentioned before, textbook questions are not necessarily the best source to use if you’re serious about adding layers to your knowledge. It is very important to broaden your prospective and find different resources. This may include going to the library and borrowing a more advanced textbook, searching the Internet for various types of worksheets or are simply asking your tutor to bring in more advanced material.

Do not simply rely on your textbook! If you want to strengthen your foundations or gain a bigger picture of the subject, it is best to read different textbooks and refer to different sources in order to gain experience.

Develop your critical thinking skills

In the past I’ve noticed that the very best students always ask questions about how a concept works. They really want to develop a deep understanding of the topic, rather than having a simple idea of how everything works.

By asking questions, it shows that you are thinking about the material. Some students do not ask questions at all, not because they know everything but because they don’t understand the topic enough to even ask a question! So don’t just blindly accept what you have learned, question it! Be curious about what you are studying! This will develop your critical thinking skills.

Teach the material

When you are in a position of teaching, you cannot maintain passive thinking. It puts you in a position where you have to understand the topic deeply – otherwise you will not know how to teach. By teaching we are also asking ourselves questions about how a concept works, or how it applies to the bigger picture.

It also reinforces what we understand about the subject we are studying, and can pinpoint our weakness points.

Tutoring offers individual support

No matter what school you attend, or how much it costs – in every school you will have other students in your class. This means that there will not be too much personalized time for students that may have missed an important concept or are behind. Although some schools organized out of school tutoring – sometimes this is not effective because it is still usually (a) in a class (b) the same teachers. Sometimes it is beneficial to get a fresh outlook on your subjects and to experience a different teaching style than your school teacher/s deliver.

Tutors can have different resources

Tutors usually have a wide variety of different resources that they can provide for the student. Usually school teachers will focus on the textbook questions and may provide extra note/questions – however rarely will they expand the student’s understanding by focusing on challenging analytical questions. Particularly the type of questions found in SACs and exams, so it is no wonder that  students often walk into tests full of confidence and then become distressed that the questions in tests, SACs and exams are many degrees harder than the exercises.

Teachers usually go through exercises to prepare students for exams and tests. However this becomes very robotic to students because they know what they have to do in the exercise. They know exactly what method to use and what formula to apply – because it is obvious within the exercise. So why is using a textbook alone limiting students? Because a test or exam will not state what method, formula or approach to take. It will simply jumble up the whole topic and leave it for the student to decide. No wonder the student will become confused in a test if they never tried to apply their knowledge!

This is a common mistake that teachers make – they don’t focus on the application of knowledge they simply focus on building skills. Although building skill is important, it often limits students to excel because they don’t understand where to use it. An excellent VCE tutor understands how important application of knowledge is, and strives to work on the student’s ability to use this information.

VCE tutors can motivate their students

Often it is a daunting task to face the challenges of VCE – and although parents and friends can support you, a VCE tutor can help motivate you. By setting regular goals and complementing students upon achievements, a VCE tutor can really help encourage students to reach their full potential. Usually the most significant improvement occurs when students are encouraged and find that they are improving in their studies.

Students usually work harder when they have a VCE tutor

Usually when students have a tutor they begin to work harder in the subject. This is because they are now committed to make a difference in their subject marks. By having assistance from a tutor, students usually ensure that they are prepared for lessons, they know exactly what questions to ask and they made progress ahead of the syllabus.

However there are also students that fall into the trap of using their VCE tutor to do their homework. Or they may not focusing during class because they know that their VCE tutor will help them understand the topic. A good tutor will recognise this problem and encourage students to try homework themselves as well as inspire them to be more attentive in class.

Tutors can often explain topics differently than school teachers

There is not only one way to understand a particular topic – there are multiple ways to reach understanding. Sometimes the way it teacher explains in class doesn’t “click” for students. It may be too complicated or other communication style may not resonate with the student’s preference. The benefit of having a tutor is that they can explain topics differently. This broadens the student’s outlook on the topic and therefore allows them to gain a deeper understanding of the concepts.

Tutors can develop an understanding of the student and their weaknesses

Since the tutor is working with the student on a weekly basis, they can begin to understand exactly where the student is at – including strengths and weaknesses. They can focus on improving the strengths and sorting out weaknesses. Unfortunately a schoolteacher usually does not have time for this, they have hundreds of students to worry about which doesn’t allow them to focus on individual care. This is not because they are inefficient at what they do, but it is challenging to help improve hundreds of students in their work.

It is almost impossible for teachers to be able to develop excellent rapport with every single student, and therefore students fall behind. This is why individual tutoring is so beneficial, the tutor is able to help the student personally based on their needs.
Overall to summarise, VCE tutoring is only worth that it student is able to put in hard work and dedication to their studies. If this is not the case, then even VCE tutoring will not perform miracles – in such a case in may not be worth spending the money. However if a student is willing to try and really wants to learn, then VCE tutoring can be beneficial and is worth the investment.

A bit of personal experience…

From personal experience, during my VCE in 2004, I did not work. The reason why I chose not to work was that my parents supported me completely. Plus I was too busy focusing on getting a solid ENTER score. Looking back at this experience from 2012, I don’t think that I would work throughout my VCE – even if I could time travel back to this period.

There were many people that disagreed with this idea; one of them was a hairdresser. I went to cut my hair in the middle of July 2004; the hairdresser began to talk to me and asked me about my life. I told I was completing the VCE and she immediately asked me if I have part-time work. I told her that I do not have any part-time work whatsoever because I wanted to focus on getting a good ENTER score to get to university. The lady was shocked; she told me that I will be suffering in the future because I will not have any experience in working. She said I would be struggling financially through university because it is important as a high school student to gain experience in working. The lady almost wanted to talk to my parents and told them that I should be working during the VCE.

Although she was very persuasive, her comments did not encourage me to find work. Personally I believe that getting into a good university course was my complete priority. Besides, to me, being paid $7.50 an hour seemed insignificant compared to the amount of money I would have after finishing a good university course. Not only this, but it seemed a waste of time to work for that amount of money. Now don’t get me wrong, I was not lazy or unmotivated.

The moment I stepped out of my VCE, had a holiday in Poland and the US, relaxed and enjoyed my summer – I decided that I do not want to rely on somebody else for financial support. Instead I began tutoring at age 17 – although I didn’t have tutoring experience, I sat my fees very low at only $15 per hour. Very soon I had built a large clientele of students and had better finances compared to most of my friends working throughout their VCE. To gain experience, I simply lowered my rate and worked very hard to improve as a tutor. Unlike the hairdresser had mentioned, I did not require part-time work during the VCE – in fact merely because I had focused on my VCE studies, I use this to my advantage.

Now I understand that not everybody can be a tutor. Also not every individual is lucky enough to find work instantly without any experience. I recognise that it can be difficult and daunting task to cope with finances particularly if parents are struggling financially themselves. Therefore it makes sense that students feel the pressure of finding part-time work.

The pros and cons of working part-time during VCE

What the hairdresser was saying to me during my hair cut in July was true. Her intentions weren’t bad, she just didn’t realise that not everybody will need to find work at a company. It is true that working in VCE will build up your resume for university years. You are probably more likely to get a manager position and better pay throughout your university degree, if you work throughout the VCE. Also it will show you what the work environment is like, so you are prepared for it in the future.

(2) You will experience of what work is really like

By working for a company, you will see the dynamics of the work environment. This will be important for you in the future, because when you finally find a full-time position it will be easier for you to integrate into the workforce. You will gain experience after working with different types of people and hopefully understand how to be a reliable worker. This will probably help you excel in the workforce.

(3) It will be easier for you to buy a house or rent during your university years

Banks often need to see about two years of consistent work before deciding whether or not you can have an approved loan. Sometimes working throughout the VCE will allow your chances of buying your own house more realistic. This obviously depends on your salary and whether the position is stable enough for the banks to trust you with a loan. Renting will also be more of a possibility if you have stable income throughout your university years.

(4) You will develop a better appreciation for money

If you learn how to deal with your money at a young age, and develop good saving habits working earlier may allow you to develop good financial skills. This is not always the case – since many students simply work to buy themselves clothes and cool gadgets, however working during VCE can be a good time to learn how to deal with money – so that you are more financially smart over your lifetime.

(5) By working you can begin to understand yourself

By going to work you can begin to develop a better understanding of yourself. Work can really define what you want and expect from the workforce – and whether this is how you want to live your life. There are other forms of work you can chose in life including self-employment, freelancing or businesses. By going to work you may understand yourself more and what type of “work” would suit your lifestyle and personality better.

(6) Time off!

If your work  is relaxing and not stressful, it can be a good way to keep your mind off the study and can help keep you sane! Working sometimes helps give students a broader perspective of life – so that they realize that life doesn’t simply end at VCE.

Cons

During the VCE it should be more important to study throughout the year compared to work. Eventually your ATAR score will allow you to enter into a university course. If you spend too much time working, and not enough time studying you may regret this in the future. Plus employers are not always very understanding when it comes to the demands of VCE. If they are not flexible, you may be forced to go to work even when you have something due at school.

(2) Is it really worth the time?
Junior workers are often underpaid significantly for their time. If you paid $7.50 per hour you should put things into perspective. Is one hour of your time, out of your life, worth $7.50? If you knew that you are going to die in one hour would you pay $7.50 to extend your life? In the movie Time, there is a great representation that shows people working for time rather than money. This is exactly what you are doing, the money is simply an exchange for your time. Although I am not encouraging anybody to become lazy – it is important to ask yourself whether your particular work is worth the time.

When doing tutoring in 2005, I knew that being paid $15 per hour is worth the time. Not because I was getting $15, but simply because my work was being helpful to students that were struggling. This gave the work meaning, it wasn’t about the money – it was about the fact that I could help VCE students cope with their subjects.

(3) Some students may stop studying when they have “good money”

When I was at school I had a friend started working from age 14. At age 17, after three years of working she got a 20% raise and was working for more than 14 hours a week. Eventually my friend decided that she doesn’t need to study during the VCE because she has enough money to cope with life.

This can be a trap for VCE students because they get to a stage where they believe they are really making significant money and they become discouraged from studying. Yet what they don’t realise is that continuing studies at university, will probably get them a better quality job after a few years of studying. When you are young it is very easy to fall into this trap – particularly if you other friends do not have much money.

So what is the verdict? Work can be beneficial, given that you grow and benefit from this experience. If you are not stressed out during working and it is not taking away your time from studies, it may be a good idea to have a few hours of work throughout your VCE.